The Bitter End
by Someone Else Took My Name
Summary: Shepard did all he could, but nothing ever goes as we plan. The Galaxy is in turmoil, it's forces have failed to unite, and the Crucible is incomplete. My re-write of the ending. Be wary that this is not a happy ending, rather, it is supposed to be much more bleak than the original. Slight AU, no pairing. Note: Story has hit a slight bump in development. On hiatus.
1. Hard Landing

"Taking fire!" Shepard heard those two dreaded words, those two awful words, and immediately reacted. He sprinted for the cockpit, past the lab and through the scanning device, and into the CIC. The whole room was ablaze with orange, and the entire left side had been engulfed in fire.

"Taking evasive maneuvers!" Joker shouted just before another metallic explosion drowned him out. They hadn't even reached Earth, had just barely gotten into the Sol system, when the first Reaper had attacked.

Shepard was thrown to the side as another blast shook the room. He groaned and wiped away a thread of blood before getting back to his feet. His head pulsed rhythmically, his chest seared with pain, and he felt a fresh torrent of blood tumble over his lip, but he had work to do. With unsteady balance he walked. Fire licked at his shoes as he ran, intense heat cooked his arms as he tried to steady himself, and he felt the ground wrenching beneath him.

Despite the heat, he grabbed onto a red-hot railing and pulled himself out of the blaze. The entire CIC was collapsing now, and it wouldn't be long before the whole ship followed. He stumbled and fell to the ground, hissing with pain as he did. Another wrenching blast shook the CIC, and he stumbled into the cockpit.

"Shepard! Thank god... EDI went offline a second ago and I don't know why. The intercom's busted and so's my arm. Dammit, this is just like-" Another blast drowned his response and shook them both.

"Joker, what do you need me to do?" Shepard shot off these words with intense ferocity as a new wave of pain buffeted him.

"Get to the drive core. Manually divert power to the shields and activate the ablative plating... We might have a fighting chance then.

"Alright-" A Reaper ship came into full sight now, hideous and terrible. The thing had to be less than a mile away.

The light plates that defended it's laser diodes opened, and a hideous red light blinded them both.

"Go!" Joker screamed just before the beam hit.

Shepard watched as the beam sluiced right through the armor plating, the plating that had cost him so much. He watched it rip straight through the entire right wing of the ship, and he watched as it traveled to the cockpit. Shepard turned and ran full sprint through the fiery blaze of the CIC. Flames seared away at his exposed flesh, burning away the clothes as if they were made of paper. He emerged covered in flame.

He ripped off his jacket and ripped off half his shirt, leaving his body almost bare. He stripped his left boot and ripped off the right. He forced himself into the elevator, hoping that it still functioned, and slammed the doors. He set the elevator to engineering and hoped that it would go faster. While the elevator made it's slow trek, heat began to grow in the small metal enclosure. Shepard panted, wheezed, and then choked as smoke filled the chamber.

The elevator was a coffin, a tiny metal coffin. Gray smoke filled the air and Shepard felt his eyes water. Pain set in his forehead, pulsating rhythmically and burning as the elevator heated. Shepard felt more fire closing in, felt the room growing hotter and hotter. He bit back a scream and began to pant as it got harder to breathe.

He began to slam at the doors and started to scream as raw panic set in. His choked voice became weaker and weaker, but it never quite died. The doors pulled open and Shepard threw himself out. Pulling in air, he stumbled back up and glanced around. The halls were a mess, but the fire hadn't reached this deck so far. He stumbled forward and looked into the shuttle bay.

The crew, or at least some of the crew, had convened here in an attempt to escape. The hangar doors were stuck though, and all for the better. If they tried to leave, that Reaper would rip them apart. Shepard turned and ran into the engineering room. He sprinted past the three terminals and into the drive core. The core was offline, had likely overloaded from the initial strain of the firefight. He sprinted to the controls and began the lengthy process of reactivation.

He pulled down a lever and activated the emergency power cells. He pressed a button and activated the emergency reactivation sequence. He put in a pass code and winced when it came up incorrect.

Another explosion rocked the room, this one much louder and closer than before. Shepard could hear the beam traveling along as he did his work. He put in the correct pass code and rerouted power. The core was badly damaged, but still operational. He rerouted half the power to the shields, and slammed the button.

The drive core flickered to life and so did the shields. He activated the ablative plating, watching with some relief as new armor replaced old. The next beam hit quick, but bounced more or less harmlessly to the right. The intercom came alive with noise a moment later. Joker's choked and wounded voice filled the air.

"Let's show them what it means to mess with us, eh Shepard?"

"Right, Joker." Shepard jogged down to the engineering deck's underbelly, the place where a certain biotic had once resided. He rummaged through the crates until he found what he needed: His under suit. He slipped it on and pulled up the zipper, relishing the sudden cover for his exposed skin.

_Speaking of which, medi-gel! I need some, now._ He thought, and as if summoned, fresh pain slammed against him. Shepard's vision narrowed for a moment, but he fought back the panic with every ounce of willpower he had in him.

Shepard stood there for an untold amount of time, silently and mentally fighting back the urge to turn tail and run. Slowly, but ever so slowly, his vision widened and returned it's normal clarity. The blur was gone, the panic, gone. He snapped himself out of paralysis and moved onward. He stepped into the elevator, relieved to find that the smoke was gone, and he went down to the shuttle bay. The doors slid open at a jerking, irregular pace, and the bay was revealed.

Vega stood amidst the smoking ruin, looking over the dead. He turned back and saw a worried Shepard running for him.

"Loco... The beam, or maybe some sort of Reaper bomb, it hit us hard... _Dios mios_." Vega groaned and looked around. "Three dead sir. The rest are in no fighting condition, but I'm fine." James pointed his finger at a severe burn wound on his side, an injury that would put a normal soldier in the ground.

"Takes more than this to kill James Vega, sir." James snapped off an off salute and limped to the armor locker.

Shepard did the same and grabbed his armor, the suit that had serviced him so well over the years. He latched it on slowly and carefully, deep in thought and lost to the world. Joker informed them that they would reach Earth in less than 3 minutes. Just a few minutes of rest, and they would be back in the fight. Shepard pulled on his helmet and sucked in a halting breath. He looked to James, and nodded.

"Ready?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"Hell no Loco... But I'm in it for good." For once, James sounded... Unsure of himself. All of his confidence had been suddenly shaken away.

"I understand. I'm going to check on the rest of the crew." He paused for a moment, as if in remembrance. "And see who survived." He finished and set out.

He went up the elevator in silence. A thin haze of smoke still hung in the tight space, but it was unnoticeable amidst the turmoil in Shepard's mind. He could see them all in his mind, dead or dying, lying in a pool of their own spreading blood as they were pinned under rubble.

He could see Garrus, slumped over and dying as he tried to pull a piece of rubble from his chest cavity. He could see Tali, her own suit burned to a crisp and the body underneath unable to escape. He could see he faceplate broken, and the face underneath marred and destroyed. He could see Liara, surrounded by fire as she tried to hold back the elements with her barriers. He saw her fail, and saw her die in agony. He saw Kaiden, pinned under a girder, coughing blood and screaming for help as he died. He could see EDI, feeling some semblance of pain as her AI core was literally scorched away.

A loud ding whipped these thoughts away and he stepped into the crew quarters. The whole area had suffered badly, fires had scorched most of the material, and explosions had caused several collapses. The ceiling had caved in once or twice, and one of the doors was jammed. However, all this was negated when he didn't see a single body. They had survived, that much was clear.

Shepard stepped into the main battery, half expecting to see Garrus's body curled up and dead. When he opened the door, the smell of smoke hit him full in the face. Shepard waved the offending stench away and stepped inside. Garrus was standing at the main gun's terminal, calibrating the gun.

Shepard was not surprised.

"Shepard. I'm sorry, but the Normandy's suffered some damage. I didn't even have time to arm the weapon... Damn." Garrus murmured, his voice quiet and reverent. "Scans say that there are six dead. The AI core also suffered a hit... EDI's offline and will likely stay that way for the rest of the Normandy's lifespan. Damn, I wish we could have hit back."

"We will hit back, Garrus. We're going to avenge our comrades, I'll make sure of it."

"I know you will Shepard, but just be careful. Kill some Reapers, but don't kill yourself in the process."

"You underestimate me, Garrus. I won't die, I never do." Shepard gave an odd little wink and continued. "And if I _did_ die, we could just _pleeease_ ask Cerberus to rebuild me." Shepard spoke with a pitch perfect impersonation of their resident quarian.

Garrus chuckled weakly and turned back to his terminal. "Alright, Shepard. I trust you." With that, Shepard continued his rounds.

He continued to Liara's office, glad to find that he wasn't nervous or afraid this time. He pulled the doors open, and the smell of smoke and burning electronics struck him fully. A haze of smoke obscured his vision for a moment, but it seemed to dissipate almost as soon as it appeared. Liara was alive, if hurt. She had suffered burn wounds in several places, and it seemed that a cut had appeared at her forehead.

But she seemed to be a bit more preoccupied with her office than her wounds. The place was in shambles, the ruined electronics were scattered all around the room. Smoke rose in gray plumes, creating a dense fog that obscured the back of the ruined office. Glyph's VI core had also been destroyed, an unfortunate loss, but nothing that couldn't be replaced. Liara was frantic, darting from place to place, trying to pull out any viable equipment, she had made several makeshift repairs, and had also managed to create a sizable pile of damaged gear.

"Liara. You're wounded." Shepard spoke with the _faintest_ edge of humor in his voice.

"As are you Shepard." She said without a break in her search.

Shepard coughed as smoke reached his lungs. He watched as Liara went about her task, working quickly and almost fearfully.

"The med-bay is just across the hall you know. Plenty of medi-gel in stock." Shepard said, letting the humor slowly creep back into his voice. However undue it might be, he was helpless to stop it.

"You haven't exactly helped yourself, Shepard." She paused briefly in her work to point at Shepard's burned hand and arms, badly damaged.

"C'mon Liara. We can have someone else salvage the office. Let's go." Shepard said, carefully gauging her response. She looked up at him, no defiance or anger in her eyes.

"Alright, Shepard. Let's go." The two of them limped to the med-bay, where Chakwas patched them up quickly and meticulously.

She applied antiseptic to the wounds, pouring medicinal alcohol onto them. Shepard didn't so much as groan as the hot burning liquid seared at his opened flesh. Next, Chakwas applied medi-gel with careful precision, careful not to wound them further. She applied a gauze roll and pushed them out the door.

"Be careful, and good luck." She said before closing the door.

Shepard sat himself down onto a chair, relishing even momentary comfort. Liara had loped back to her office, obviously unhappy with the prospect of taking even a moment of a break. Shepard sat alone, looking into the desolate ruins of the ship. _His_ ship.

"Arriving at Earth. ETA ten seconds." Joker's voice broke the silence, and Shepard gave an involuntary groan at the prospect of reentering battle. His wounds would heal quickly, but it was going to be such a long fight.

_Just one more fight, once more and you can retire with full honors._ Shepard thought, feeling awful dread settle over his heart as he realized the hopelessness of it all. They hadn't prepared enough for this, hell, they hadn't even been able to fight off the Reaper interceptor when they entered the Sol system. The surrounding fleet was small and weak... Their chances were far too low.

Earth was in sight now. And it was not a pretty sight. Fires raged eternally and Reaper ships bombarded the planet from orbit. It was like Palaven, but far, far worse. Shepard gave a wince as he saw a cruiser come down, wondering just how many people were on there. Shepard wished for more time, more resources, but both wishes were denied. Reaper interceptors came in sight, swimming into view with their weapons bared.

"No..." Shepard groaned as the first beam shot out.

The fresh plating deflected a fair bit of the energy, but a fair bit more slammed into it. The star ship gave a lurch, but otherwise maintained stability. Garrus armed the Thanix cannon, and a blue beam of energy shot out. Unlike the Normandy, the Reaper ships weren't armored. The beam slammed into the first of those two, hitting it with full force.

The Reaper ship seemed unharmed by the hit, but didn't quite retaliate after the attack ended.

The other ship had no such reservations.

Another red beam shot out, slamming into the Normandy's plating, luckily not breaching the hull or doing vital damage. The Normandy reciprocated in full, firing with full force as the Thanix rearmed. The ship came closer and engaged it's missiles. A few timed shots later, they had taken down the Reaper's exposed laser diode.

The huge ship went dark for all of a second, but it was forgotten as the second ship attacked the exposed flank. The Normandy suffered a grave hit, this one destroying the starboard observation deck. Shepard gave an animal grunt and ordered the firing crew to the shuttle bay.

"Joker! Get the crew to the shuttle bay, we need to pull out." Shepard shouted amidst the panic.

"Commander, you'll be killed! Those Reapers will destroy you!" Joker responded, his voice backed with raw panic.

"Joker... We're facing down two Reapers, we can't win this."

"Alright, Shepard." Joker pulled onto the intercom. "Vega, Tali, Kaidan, Garrus, Liara, report to the shuttle bay. We're pulling you out."

Shepard turned and made for the elevator, intent on escaping before he got spaced again. The first Reaper's laser diode relighted itself, and it fired another energy pulse. The barriers were shot directly through and the plating underneath was cut through. Shepard's cabin was engulfed and destroyed, complete vaporized by the horrendous blast.

The Normandy turned tail, both to provide a better angle for launching the shuttle and to open fire. Missiles blazing, Thanix cannon alight with blue fire, it ripped apart the Reaper ships. Moments later, the cargo door opened and a shuttle shot out. They were just above Earth, but they would only have enough fuel for a one-way trip.

_Deja fucking vu._ Shepard thought as the shuttle shot down.

The Normandy was running interference, dealing damage as best as it could, but ultimately being overpowered. Both Reapers opened fire in unison, their beams a livid red. The red fire crashed through the Normandy's hull, tearing away at the last shreds of it's armor. An explosion sent a plume of orange light into the night sky, bringing an inferno unto the vacuum.

It turned tail and fired, slamming another 12 missiles into the exposed Reaper and hitting it with full force with it's cannons. The Reaper ship was relatively unfazed, evidenced clearly as it continued it's assault. The Normandy strained under it's attack, and it's drive core went dark once more. The weapons, powered by an entirely different source, continued firing.

Shepard watched this grisly display from the shuttle. He looked around the empty space, and cursed everyone who _wasn't_ involved in the fight. Because of them, Joker was dying and the Normandy was burning. Because of them, The SR2 would die the same way that the SR1 had. A sudden burst of fire illuminated the darkness, obscuring the Normandy for all of a second. Moments later, the fire cleared and the Normandy was revealed. The ship was in shambles, but somehow still working.

* * *

The Normandy was completely empty save for one lone figure. Joker sat in a burning cockpit, his leather seat damaged, scuffed, and dripping with liquid. He had evacuated everyone else, and now sat alone in this fight. He flew the Normandy in close to launch the next assault, a close range blast from the Javelin missile launcher, and pulled out. A Reaper beam reciprocated, slamming into the Normandy's hull with incredible force. The crew deck collapsed under the hit, first losing it's air and filling with vacuum. Fires spread closer, and Joker put up a barrier to slow their spread.

_Time for the Piece De Resistance._ He thought as he pulled the Normandy closer to one of the two Reapers. The ship alone was not enough to defeat a Reaper, nowhere close, but he wasn't alone.

The shuttle bay opened once more, and this time, it would stay open. A swarm of unmanned drones flew from it's hull, a project that he, Cortez, and close to a hundred Quarian engineers had been working on for a good while. The drones, each of them about the size of a soccer ball, individually packed enough firepower to take down a fighter ship. The swarm of close to 200 came rushing out, firing high-density energy weapons.

"That's Geth tech, you sons of bitches!" Joker screamed in fury and pride as the swarm encircled the Reaper ship.

The Normandy opened fire, narrowly avoiding it's own drones and hitting the Reaper below. The swarm fired energized plasma onto the Reaper ship, searing and damaging it's armored hull. The Reaper buckled under the assault, pausing from it's relentless assault on the Normandy to try to damage the individual drones. Joker was grimly reminded of a man swatting at flies.

The Geth had been lost to the Galaxy, destroyed by the Quarian flotilla, but their technology had survived. The Quarians had subsequently upgraded the Normandy, first supplying weapons and then shields to the ship.

_In a way, the Geth are helping me win this fight._ Joker thought as the Normandy pulled away from the Reaper ship.

The second Reaper opened it's plates and let loose a storm of energy. The Normandy was enveloped in a red firestorm as it's ammunition stores were hit. Joker cursed under his breath as he heard metal wrenching beneath his feet. The remaining set of engines aboard the Normandy exploded, bringing the ship to a jarring halt. Yet, despite the barrage it had bestowed on the immobilized ship, the beam kept firing.

Another blast hit the Normandy, sending it flying through empty space. Joker felt a rib snap as a flying piece of rubble slammed into him. He groaned in pain and fell to the ground. Joker got to his feet and looked behind him. The CIC was covered in fire and brimstone... But still intact. He could escape, he really could. There were pods nearby, and if that failed, he could grab a suit and go out the airlock. He had a chance to escape.

Joker considered it, but he had to finish this. There was no going back, no retreat. It was time to finish this.

The first Reaper, having been relentlessly assaulted by the swarm, was finally collapsing under the strain. A plasma shell destroyed it's diode, bringing weakness to it's systems. For a moment, it went completely dark, but the illusion was dispelled almost as soon as it arrived. With a jumping start, it whirred back to life, but noticeable weaker. Another wave of shells hit it's hull, bringing another blast of red fire into the vacuum.

The Reaper buckled under this continued assault, and once more it went dark. The Normandy turned tail and ripped it apart with a barrage of missiles and laser beams. The diode went dark under the assault, but this time, it stayed dark.

A minute passed, and it exploded. Red fire enveloped the drones, damaged the other Reaper, and hit the Normandy. With the force of a miniature supernova, it destroyed everything around it. Joker collapsed from the hit, and was sent flying from it. His head crashed into the wall, and his skull shattered from the impact.

A dozen shards of bone dug into his brain and tissue. Sudden warmth took hold of him, staying faint but rapidly growing. A sensation of fire quickly grew in him, bringing him closer and closer to the brink of death. His cybernetics had malfunctioned, and he would soon pay for it. With a bloodcurdling screech, he died. Violently and horribly, he died.

The Normandy went the very same way.

* * *

If Earth looked bad from space, up close, it was an atrocity. Earth's terrain was rocky, destroyed, desolate, and wholly unrecognizable. Blue-gray figures walked along the ruined terrain, occasionally looking up at the passing shuttle. Soldiers were far and few between, and civilians were completely absent. Fire raged across all fronts, burning hot and bright, but somehow unable to dispel the darkness. The occasional explosion brought light to the hideous landscape, but also ineffective at dispelling the heavy shroud of darkness.

Shepard looked at the ruin, and instantly felt disgust. No one said anything, and many averted their gaze from the landscape. Cortez idled the engine, first slowing it, and then stopping it. The doors opened, and the six soldiers stepped out into the desolate landscape. Now that they were _in_ it, the place became much worse. The air contained a smoky, acrid, and unpleasant taste. The smell of blood, intermingled with smoke, gunpowder, and rotting flesh filled the air. The faces that came by them were pale and desperate. They shuffled slowly, as if exhausted, and went without much emotion.

Shepard looked around the base camp, and saw little that signaled a military presence. In fact, the whole place looked more like a refugee camp, rather than a military outpost. Shepard walked to the main tent, where Hackett was supposed to be stationed. He opened the tent flap and stepped inside, Garrus at his left and Liara at his right.

The man that greeted him was a bony husk, a defunct illusion of the man it once was. Hackett was significantly weakened, looking much thinner, much more _skeletal_ than ever. His whitened beard was unshaven and pallid. His skin was clammy and thin, stretched horrifically over his face. His hands were bony, and his handshake was like grabbing a bag of bones. His grin was horrific, much more unsettling then it was comforting.

"Shepard." The Admiral's voice was husky and weak, strained beyond it's limits. The horrific grating noise of his jawbone was a severe system shock to John Shepard.

"Hackett." Shepard responded, shocked beyond his words.

"Look, we have one shot here." He paused, trying to go over his plans and keep his vision from failing. "The Crucible isn't fully developed, but our scientists say that it might work." He paused again, as if the mere act of speaking was hurting him. "Albeit, the blast will be extremely unstable." He finished.

"I'm willing to take that risk." Shepard said, not trusting his words in any way.

"We have problems, though. The beam is swarming with Reaper ground forces, and the way will be risky. But we have a solution." He paused to grab a map from a bin on the ground. "There's a heavy cannon over here." He pointed to the ruined husk of an office building. "A firing crew set it up just a week ago, but they were wrested from their position. The going's gonna get tough, but you're used to it, Shepard."

Shepard gave a slight shuffle as he listened, the first sign of his betraying nerves.

"It's been targeted for the area around the edge of No Man's Land. The damn place is infested by Rachni and Husks. You fire that cannon a couple times, and that should be enough. It's a larger, modified version of a Reaper Blackstar."

"I thought that the Blackstar and it's mechanisms were completely misunderstood?" Liara interjected.

Hackett shrugged. "When you take the best scientists in the galaxy and group them together, something's bound to happen."

Hackett paused and cleared his throat to continue.

"Once the Reaper ground troops have pulled out, we can send our remaining troops in to reinforce the position. It isn't foolproof, but in theory, it should work." Hackett looked at Shepard. "After you hit the troops, you'll need to deal with the Reapers. There's not two, but _three_ of the hulking bastards guarding it."

"How the hell do we deal with them?"

"Our ships could never reach them, our Dreadnoughts are the only thing capable of destroying them, and going close to the planet is a death sentence for those hulking things. However, that's something we won't have to worry about. A downed Dreadnought, the Indomitable, is ready to use. The massive ruin is staring directly into the beam... The crew is dead, but it's main weapon is not. It has survived, and could be redirected to hit the Reapers with full force. Though it might not be enough to kill the damn things, it might just redirect their attention."

"So we need to get some heavy fire on the site. Sounds good." Shepard said, his voice containing an unusual measure of fear.

"Once the Reapers are down, we begin our final charge. It'll be risky, but if we even get one soldier in the beam, it'd be worth it.

"Yes sir."

"Right. Get to it, our troops won't hold much longer."

"Yessir." Shepard stepped out of the tent, and over to the Mako. A soldier opened the door, and he stepped inside. He looked to his squad.

"Tali, James, Kaidan, get to the Dreadnought. Garrus, Liara, with me. Godspeed to you, men."

"Aye aye, Commander." The other three chimed in monotonously, their voices devoid of their usual liveliness.

Shepard nodded and stepped into the Mako, which he, (thank god) would not be piloting. He stepped into the small interior and strapped himself into a seat. He spent the ride wordlessly and silently, accompanied by only the small hum of the Mako's engine. Garrus sat monotonously, fidgeting with his rifle and doing nothing of importance. Liara was sitting in silence, likely engrossed in her thoughts. That was just how the ride passed.

* * *

Almost as soon as the doors opened, all hell broke loose. The doors opened, and a swarm of biotic energy came flying in. The Mako's interior was shook badly by the hit, throwing it's occupants to the floor and wounding those near the blast site. Gunfire instantly followed it, shredding apart the entrance and preventing movement.

Liara got to her feet and activated her shield generator, A gunshot grazed her as-of-yet undefended flesh and she grunted in pain. Garrus stumbled forward and brought up his rifle. He fired a storm of rounds, quelling but not dispelling the shroud of gunfire. A round hit his armor, embedding itself into the defensive layer. Shepard himself had been knocked into the gray mist of his sub-conscious by the blast, slowly trying to regain his senses. Memories flashed by, burning an intense afterimage into his sightlines.

Liara, despite her slight wound, conjured up a massive barrier, thick enough to defend against bullets and big enough to cover the Mako. The barrier held steady, Liara did not.

"Go!" She yelled in a straining voice, and Garrus responded quickly.

Shepard was slower to regain his consciousness, but he still did so. He got his feet and scrambled out of the Mako. The barrier was beginning to flicker, and occasional rounds burst through the defensive bubble. Liara came running out of the Mako, holding onto the barrier with both hands. The barrier flickered out just before she made it behind a collapsed column. Rounds slammed into her shields, first damaging then overloading the core. The kinetic barrier collapsed, and just before she darted under the column, she felt something rip through her and blood coursing over and soaking through her clothing.

"Goddess!" She grunted before pulling out a medi-gel canister.

Shepard took up the left flank, Garrus the center, and Liara somewhere between them. Shepard popped from cover to gun down a few approaching Cannibals, then retreated back under, barely avoiding a biotic attack. Garrus, meanwhile, had attempted to push forward.

Gunfire pinned them both down, and they were left at a stalemate. The enemy was staying where it was- Their enemy was just as powerful as them, but they had the advantage of numbers. Meanwhile, Shepard and his soldiers were sparse, and they shouldn't take risks, lest they were killed.

Shepard jumped up and unleashed an incinerating blast, slamming into three of the exposed enemies... But they regained their numbers almost as soon as they were lost. A round hit him in the shoulder, dispelling his shield and crushing the armor underneath. He grunted, but did not drop. Instead, he fired a modified concussive blast- A little trick that Vega had taught him. The blast knocked back the brunt of the enemy, throwing them back and halting their slight advance.

Liara had regained her faculties and on her way upward, trying to push the enemy back from their positions. Garrus joined her in it, both of them pushing ahead. Gunfire met their advance, driving their progress to a torturous crawl, but neither of them was willing to fall back. Garrus pushed forward and ducked behind cover, hissing with pain as a round punctured his chest. With a spray of blue blood, he dropped down and popped the heat sink. Liara put up a barrier for a short while, and Shepard made use of it.

He sprinted forward, making his way up with unprecedented speed. Just before he reached cover, the barrier broke and a biotic pulse slammed into him.

Seemingly at the same time.

He was thrown to the ground, the air fleeing from his lungs and rounds pelting his shielding. He groaned and forced himself up onto his knees. Shepard looked up to see a Banshee approaching, a sickly, hideous blue orb pulsating in it's hand. Shepard tried to get to his feet, but suddenly found himself unable to move. Terror and paralysis intertwined and took hold of his mind, bringing him to a jarring halt.

His heart was beating rapidly and irregularly. He felt solitary pain wrench at his chest, a tingle first and then a _ripping _tear in his chest. He looked down at the ground and spat blood. Ripping pain hit him like a brick, sending him to the ground. He grayed out as pain buffeted at him, but he fought the darkness.

The Banshee let loose a terrible screech, a sound that would ring in everyone's ears long after the noise had ceased. It grabbed Shepard by the helmet, lifting it with one hand and grabbing with the other. It looked into Shepard's eyes though the helmet, and relished the terror it saw. Shepard squirmed under it's grasp, but was helpless under it's influence. More pain ripped at his fragile mind, tearing at the thin foundations of his sanity.

The Banshee pulled away one of it's hands and created a bluish orb of biotic power inside it's palm. The sickly, rotten light beamed into Shepard's eyes, blinding and hurting him. With a deadly screech, the Banshee whipped the orb into Shepard's chest. First, there was a steadfast wall defending him. The kinetic barrier held for such a short time, though. Moments later, it was through.

Shepard felt a hot, searing, _melting_ sensation double over his chest pains, and then he felt nothing.

Garrus had done everything he could, shot rounds and concussive shots into the monster's back, but it was simply too powerful. When Shepard fell to the ground, all hope truly _was_ lost. Forgoing caution and tactics, he let loose an ululating scream and charged the Banshee. He let loose his omni-tool and jumped onto the Banshee's back. The omni-blade ripped open the husk's armored back.

Once more, the Banshee screamed, letting loose that same horrific screech once more. Garrus threw himself off it's back and pulled his rifle. Letting loose a volley, he screamed venomously. Rounds hit him, breaking his armor and the plated flesh beneath. Yet, he didn't care. He once said that he would go to hell and back for Shepard.

And he hadn't been lying.

Rounds expelled, he dodged from the Banshee's assault and charged forward. He slammed the omni-blade into the Banshee's exposed face, first crumpling the synthetic face and splitting it afterward. Yet, it didn't die. With hideous vitality, it slammed it's biotic fist into Garrus's chest, launching him backward and knocking the air from his lungs.

Liara summoned every iota of strength, every last bit of biotic energy she had left. Her head pulsed with rhythmic pain, her arms grew tired and heavy, and she felt an unpleasant wet sensation in the core of her stomach. Still, Shepard was her commander, a comrade, and a friend. She didn't let friends die. She launched a twisting orb of biotic power, a purple-blue shard of energy. The shard sheared into the Banshee's back, ripping into it and then through it. Garrus had been lucky, for he would have been decapitated if he was still holding onto the monster's back.

The shard twisted and twirled in the air, growing dim but not quite fading. It whipped back and flew back to the Banshee's wounded form. The Banshee turned to project a barrier, but it was too little, too late. The shard ripped through the barrier, hit the Banshee behind it, and twisted through to the other layer of the barrier.

The shard hit the barrier's rough edge with dwindling force. Still, while not strong enough to punch through the barrier, it still hit it with incredible power. The result was a massive controlled explosion that completely vaporized the Banshee, but somehow the main force had remained inside the barrier. With a final screech, the Banshee was vaporized. It faded completely, leaving no trace of it's existence behind.

Shepard's entire body was convulsing with pain. Horrible, crippling fire raged inside him, searing his insides and destroying his mind. He writhed in pain as he waited for death, something that surely would not escape him... He _wanted_ to die, anything to end this horrific pain. For the longest time, he stayed in that state of tormented pain and eternal fire, but it eventually faded. Ten seconds passed.

Shepard opened his eyes with a start. The first smell to hit him was burning flesh, and he instantly recoiled from it. He looked down to see the hole in his stomach, a gaping tear in both his armor and his flesh. He was perched against a concrete pillar, taking cover from the shroud of gunfire. He looked around and saw Liara to his right, and Garrus to his left. Both were looking weak and hurt, Garrus a bit more than Liara.

"Shepard! Get up! I know you need time to heal, but dammit, those things are getting closer." Garrus spoke without looking away from the rushing armada.

Shepard felt panic intertwine around his mind, a dense network of fear and horror that threatened to completely envelop his mind. With desperate strength, he fought it back and forced words to his lips.

"I'll get us some help, Garrus." His voice was shaky and unsteady, completely unlike him. Still, at least he had the strength to speak.

Garrus nodded and kept shooting, aiming at nothing and everything all at once. Liara was focused on regaining her strength, as she seemed to be too weakened to even keep her eyelids up. Shepard tapped on the radio on his shoulder, relieved to find that it had survived the assault. He brought it up and turned it on.

"Hackett? Anyone?" Shepard chimed, his voice a litany of macabre terror.

A familiar voice answered him.

"Shepard?"

"Anderson! You're alive!"

Anderson gave a brief cough and a tinny laugh that lacked humor. "Just barely... Reaper troops closing in, my own troops are dead... They'll find me soon. Look, I'm glad you got to me, Shepard. I wanted to say goodbye."

"No!" Shepard shouted, unable to take this fresh bombshell of tragedy. "You'll make it, you have to!"

"No Shepard... The time has passed for that, besides, I'm old... I did my part."

"Anderson..."

"Shepard. Goodbye, soldier. You did good, you did good. Finish this fight, for Ashley, for the Normandy, for me. Good-" A gunshot rang out through the microphone, and the transmission ended soon after.

_Damn! Dammit! Anderson, no... No, no, no..._ His thoughts, strangled and garbled, would be unintelligible to anyone but him. With a tragic sigh, he tapped on his microphone once more.

"Hello? Anyone?" His voice was much more watery than before, but there was another, more pressing sound in the microphone: The sound of gunfire was louder and closer than before.

"Shepard. This is Hackett, what do you need?"

"Soldiers, now. Send a firing squad, we're getting overrun here!"

Hackett gave a brief pause. "Shepard, we don't have the men to spare."

"Please, Hackett... we can't do this on our own, we need some help!"

"Shepard, we... We... Alright. We'll send a shuttle, but you need to hold out. All our other shuttles are out, and it'll take two minutes to call another one back. The shuttle will be there in five minutes, seven tops. Godspeed, soldier."

"You too, sir." Shepard cut the transmission and cursed out loud.

Without another word, he grabbed his rifle and started to fire. The enemy line had advanced pretty far, and would have swallowed them whole if they delayed any longer. He fired the rest of his clip, popped under cover and ejected the heat sink. He shoved in another and grabbed Liara's arm. She nodded and they went in a loping, quick run.

Slugs hit them as they ran, but their shields held until they made it behind cover. Shepard pulled up and unleashed a blast of devastating force unto the horde. He noted with satisfaction that three of them had been knocked back by the blast.

Moments later, things got worse.

Much worse.


	2. Death and Dreadnought

Kaidan looked over the ruins of the Dreadnought, and immediately wished he hadn't. It was ruined and destroyed, absolutely totaled. It's burnt hull was desiccated beyond repair... But that wasn't the worst of it. The whole ship, or almost the whole ship, was writhing with blue-gray figures. A sea of Husks scrabbled onto the hull, attempting to scale it's damaged walls. The writhing wall of husks were both disgusting to look at, and revolting to sense.

The Husks carried an unnatural scent, unnoticeable in small groups, but unbearable in such an army as this. They smelled of rusty metal and rotten fruit, a very odd mixture. As if that terrible stench wasn't bad enough, he was terrified. When one saw hundreds, _thousands_, of his former comrades scrambling up a downed ship, it wasn't forgotten.. Kaidan was feeling a terrible dread now, was absolutely writhing in it. Terror was full and powerful in his head, and he desperately wished he could leave.

_No! Shepard's depending on you... It's your job to do this._ His thoughts whirred, and somehow, they worked. With a deep breath, he signaled the others forward and began trekking toward the downed Turian Dreadnought.

The soil underfoot was hard, gravelly, and very unstable. In fact, he could feel everything sliding underneath him as he walked on. Still, he made it to solid ground without falling, and he had managed to fight back the sense of dread that the Husks exuded. He pulled his heavy pistol from it's holster and nestled it firmly in his hands. As he neared the Dreadnought, he could see more and more husks rushing to it's damaged frame.

_Can they... Can they sense living things? Do they sense survivors in there?_ The thought was more investigate than provocative, but that didn't stop the shivers that were sent up his spine.

Tali stepped behind him. If her mask had been removed, the viewer would have seen terror and awe intermingled.

"Keelah..." She groaned, her voice indicating fear and slight traces if anger.

The group trundled on, careful to stay upwind of the Husks. Though the sight could be averted, the smell could not. Tali scanned the ship's exterior with her omni-tool.

"We have four possible entry points. The ship crashed at an angle, so the cargo bay doors should be available. Bay's got plenty of husks, but we should be able to fight them off. Alternatively, we could crawl through the engines. Less husks that way, but a bit longer to the main gun. A third option would be through an access shaft on the top of the ship. We fight through hoards of husks, but we'd be relatively fine once we got inside." Tali paused for a moment, beckoned to the writhing mass of husks squirming over the ship. "Or we could blow through the walls. Do some damage, y'know, make Shepard proud." Tali gave an odd smile, unseen by the others.

"What do you think is the best course of action, Tali?" Kaidan asked.

"Through the engines."

"Screw that, Sparks. I've got a satchel full of bombs and they're ready to blow." Vega shouted cheerfully.

Tali gave a submissive shrug and grinned once more.

"I'm down for it." Kaidan said, also grinning.

"Keelah... What did Shepard say? 'If you can't beat em', join them'. Alright. Tali chimed in.

Vega and Kaidan took their guns and prepared for the hellstorm ahead. Tali put away her omni-tool and summoned her drone.

Like the heroes that their fans had come to idolize, they fought with style. They moved in a straight firing line, Kaidan in the center with Tali and Vega to his left and right. Tali pulled her pistol and shot down a number of the monstrous beings, while Kaidan launched biotic volleys at incredible speeds. Vega, however, had focused on lobbing grenades into the horde.

The sea of thousands was cut in half before either of them realized it. Their guns burned hot and red, but their minds were cold and calculated. For a moment, they fell into the belief that it was in their favor. Big mistake.

A Brute came rushing from the writhing horde, carving a path through the dead sea of flesh. It roared and stamped, sending dirt flying into the air. The group did not falter in their advance. Just as well for the hulking monstrosity. The Brute charged their firing line, arms raised and legs flailing. It whipped it's arm through the air, targeted for the clumped line.

Tali and Vega had ducked in time. Kaidan had not. Ribs and bones crushed under the impact, and he spat blood into the air as he flew. He let loose a terrifying scream as he smashed into the Dreadnought's hardened hull. Blood flowed in rivulets down his lips, and his vision went dark. Tali sprinted forward and pulled up her omni-tool.

Vega side-stepped the Brute, avoiding a high-flying swing, and jammed an incendiary grenade in between it's armored plating. He threw himself back, and unintentionally into the questing hands of a Husk. Stifling a scream, he looked up into the Husk's cold, dead eyes. The Husk let loose a terrible scream and brought a metallic fist down into Vega's face.

A stony crunching noise accompanied the impact, under-toned by a wet, squishing noise. Tali looked to see the Husk, it's horrific hands wrapped around Vega's throat. She pointed her omni-tool at the Husk and launched a neural shock unto it- A little present that Mordin had given her days before his death. Though the synthetic beast did not feel pain, it was still effectively crippled by the massive strain on it's electrical systems.

It stumbled to the ground and let go of Vega. It fell to the ground and died there. James groaned in pain and he felt the first tendrils of darkness take his vision. Still, he fought the darkness and he fought the panic. He forced himself into movement, barely dodging another one of the bastards. Blood coursing down his face, he stepped toward the Brute once more.

Kaidan felt his vision come back, and with it, the horrific sensation of pain. An inferno raged behind his head, burning on and on. His back felt like a board... A very beaten and damaged board. His arms and legs were stiff and weak, and very, very hurt. Pain burned at a massively crippling rate, practically incapacitating him.

Tali ducked under the charging Brute's arms and launched an incinerating blast into the monster's back. The Brute roared in what sounded like pain, and Tali felt triumph blooming in her heart.

But she forgot one critical aspect. Husks don't feel pain.

The Brute whipped around with incredible speeds. It swung it's stony, plated arm into Tali's stationary figure. Her face-plate, metallic and reinforced, survived the impact.

She did not.

Her body was flung across the landscape, the suit battered and beaten, the body underneath damaged twice as badly. Her head flopped at an unnatural angle and her legs splayed painfully as she flew. She had no last thoughts, no flash-back memories, and only one feeling:

Dread. Terrible, horrific, tangible dread. She died in terror.

"Sparks!" Vega screamed as he saw Tali go flying into the horde of Husks. Rage bubbled in him, and a deep cauldron of strength he never knew existed was opened. With a roar, he ran screaming at the Brute.

The Brute whipped back to face Vega. It's terrifying head peered at him with vicious eye as it pulled it's arms up.

"Big mistake." James muttered as he pulled a satchel bomb from his belt.

He dodged a blow and threw the satchel at the Brute's center. The giant Husk roared and slammed it's arm into Vega's side. With a crushing blow, James went flying into the air. Blood trailed him as he flew, but he wasn't dead.

Not even close.

Vega grabbed his trigger as he hit the ground, and triggered it. A muffled blast filled the air, an anti-climactic sound, but satisfactory nonetheless. A red flame licked out under the Brute, smoke filled the air, and the Husk fell to the ground. Sickly blue blood pooled under it's dead form, and Vega let loose a sigh. Broken bones grated inside him, a very painful sensation, but he still had a job to do.

He pulled himself off the ground and looked around. Husks were approaching, and would be on them soon. He limped ahead of the crowd and grabbed Kaidan's arm. The soldier groaned, but managed to get to his feet. The two of them loped off toward the cargo bay door.

"Tali's dead, isn't she." Kaidan's voice was completely emotionless.

"Yeah."

The Husks were gaining ground, first shambling and then sprinting in their pursuit. Both of them were in no state to fight, but which of them was worse off was debatable. Vega pushed out a halting breath, and was discouraged to find that his breath tasted like blood. He pushed ahead, not knowing that one of his lungs had ruptured.

Kaidan struggled to stay with him, but pain was bringing him closer and closer to unconsciousness. He staggered momentarily, but managed to regain his balance before he fell. He took a look behind him, and wished he hadn't. The sea of Husks was gaining ground, and moving faster. They'd be on them within five seconds.

"Change of plans! Kaidan, hold them back, I'll blast through the wall!"

"Dunno about that Vega... God, that hurts..."

"Don't care, we won't make it otherwise!"

James grabbed his second and last satchel and jammed it against the hull. He hoped to God that it would be enough. He looked over to see Kaidan, barely looking like he could stand up, let alone fight.

"Kaidan, get on the bomb. I'll take care of these bastards!" Vega's face twisted into a grotesque snarl under his helmet. He rushed ahead and pulled his shotgun.

A husk sprinted forward, commanding it's raw instinct into a murderous charge. Vega sidestepped it and delivered a slug into it's side. He whipped the gun forward and fired another slug, and another, and another. Another Husk charged forward, and before Vega could bring his shotgun up, he found himself on the ground.

"Fuck!" He shouted as he nestled his gun under the Husk's stomach. The Husk brought it's fist down onto Vega's armor, crushing the flesh underneath. The air rushed from his lungs in a rush, but his trigger finger never moved.

Blue blood flew into the air and the Husk rolled off him. He crawled backward and shot off another slug into the armada. He got to his feet and dropped his shotgun.

"Dammit!" He cursed as the next wave charged forward.

An explosion filled the air, and Vega felt himself fly forward, propelled by a rush of warm air. He hit the ground with a crushing thud, but was otherwise unhurt. He got to his feet and ran to the open hole in the hull. Kaidan pushed himself inside, grabbing at his head as he did. Vega lamented the loss of his shotgun, but he needed to leave.

He made it into the dark corridors of the Dreadnought and started to run. Kaidan made it behind the nearest door, waited for Vega to catch up, and slammed the door shut. Immediately afterward, Kaidan crouched against the wall and grabbed at his temples. He rubbed at them absently as he subconsciously curled into a fetal position.

"You okay?" Vega asked.

"Mi-mi-migraine..." Kaidan responded, his voice deathly quiet.  
Vega gave a silent nod and crouched against the wall, directly across from Kaidan's wounded shape. He pulled off his helmet and laid it carefully on the ground. Quietly, almost soundlessly, he stripped off his armor and grabbed a canister of medi-gel. He went slowly and methodically about his healing, applying generously and healing quickly.

For awhile, all was quiet. Kaidan relished the silence, but silence never lasts.

Loud, metal bending noises filled the air. Kaidan instinctively slammed his hands against his ears, as if to shield him from the noise. Vega winced as he watched this, inwardly horrified and outwardly sympathetic. Something began to bang against the door, another noise that drove Kaidan further into his misery.

"Kaidan. Let's go." Vega spoke without resolution, and his voice wavered with fear.

"Just... A few... More minutes..." He groaned in response as he clutched at his temples.

"No time. Let's go."

Kaidan groaned in response as another wave of pain crashed over him. Migraine headaches had plagued him all his life- A side effect of the L2 implants he used. Still, despite this crippling, debilitating fire raging in his head, he pushed himself off the ground. Shaky uneasiness took him as he did, and he soon tumbled back to the ground.

"Fuck..." He groaned.

"C'mon, Kaidan." Another metal crash rang through the still air, and Vega began to worry.

Kaidan pushed himself off the ground, this time with more steadiness, and began to walk. Vega noted that he had a minor limp. They moved through the halls, Vega occasionally looking over his shoulder as they did. Kaidan simply rubbed at his temples as he walked, attempting to combat the horrific pain that had hit him.

Vega looked over the schematics that had been on Tali's omni-tool.

_Thank god she transferred them._ He thought as a spark of dull anger lit up his mind.

He was in a corridor that led along the crew quarters. Taking this route would lead him to the transit system- The backbone of the Dreadnought. A platform could travel along the Dreadnought's spine, an easy way to reach the ship's main gun. Take the platform all the way forward, move north through a corridor until he reached the main battery. From there he could activate the gun, aim it, and fire. Might take some calibrations though.

_Damn, Scars would've been useful here._ He thought sullenly, unaware that a hysterical laughing fit had taken his mind and body. The sound, somehow _more_ terrifying than the Husks' clambering, shocked Kaidan into anger. Desperate terror does odd things to one's pysche.

"What the hell, Vega! Tali's dead and so are we, and you're _laughing!_" Kaidan startled himself. His voice was watery and emotional, uneven and scared. It had degenerated into the scared voice of a wounded child. Nevertheless, he did not stop.

"It's over! We're dead!_ We're going to die here!_"

"Sorry, Kaidan. Don't know what came over me." Vega replied with earnest apology.

Kaidan's temper came and went by storm, leaving moments after it's arrival.

"No. It's not your fault. Let's just go." Kaidan meant what he said, but was in no way ready to pull through with it. He was slumped on the ground, his legs strained to the breaking point. Though Vega wasn't feeling peachy, Kaidan was on the edge of his limits. If he didn't stop to rest, he was sure to die.

"No, we need time to rest. The gun can wait."

"Alright, Vega... We can stop for a couple minutes."

The two of them took more than a couple minutes, almost took half an hour in their recuperation. Something that would cost them dearly in the minutes to come.

* * *

Banshees. How Shepard hated them.

Now, there was not one, not two, but _an entire fucking dozen_ of them. Shepard looked to his men, and saw equal dismay and horror on them. Liara in particular seemed distressed. Shepard's mind was a shifting sea of panic as he tried to formulate a plan. They were coming straight ahead, tall and vicious as they advanced.

"Shepard... I think we have a shot." Garrus's voice chimed above their terrible screams.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I can move up, through their defenses and toward the gun. If you can keep them off me, I'll be able to fire off a few rounds... We'll have to hope that it's enough."

"No Garrus. It's a suicide mission!"

Garrus chuckled weakly after firing a volley of rounds. "Shepard, you and I have a good history with Suicide Missions. I can do this."

"No, you can't. Hackett's firing squad will arrive in a few minutes, we just need to-"

"We won't last a few minutes! While we've been chatting, those bastards have closed half the distance! We need to do this now!"

"No, Garrus. Stand down."

Garrus considered his options for a moment, considered the friendship that had been built over the years. He considered how easily it could be destroyed because of one action. Yet, in his thoughts, he realized one thing. His family was dead, and something told him, some odd intuition, that Tali was too. Shepard was his friend, his only friend, but that changed nothing. He had nothing to live for, and everything to die for.

"I can't do that sir. I've got to do this, for all of us."

"Garrus! NO!"

It was too late. Garrus tore free of Shepard's grasp and sprinted directly into the fray.

Almost at once, a flurry of rounds and biotics tore into him. Blood flew in every direction, his armor was blown open, and much of his chest was pulverized by it...

...Yet he still stood. He staggered forward as rounds overpowered him, still spattering blood and losing vitality. He loped into a faulting run and sprinted behind lines. A Banshee made a grab at him, but missed his fringe by a few inches. He shrugged off another blow and dove forward to avoid a biotic blast.

A round crushed the back of his head, shearing off his fringe and the back of his neck...

...Yet he _still _stood. He pulled up his assault rifle and fired haphazardly, hitting nothing but a wall. Garrus made it to the gun controls, but it was a near thing. A biotic attack crushed his body, crumpling it and sending it into the air. He slammed down onto the ground with a crushing snap, a blow that would have killed any human. Garrus was no human, however. He pulled himself up, dismayed at the loss of his sniper rifle.

Shepard threw everything, his life, his chances, this war, Liara, and everything else into the fire. He charged forward, unaware that nothing was shooting at him as he went. He signaled Liara forward, and she obeyed. He triggered his Tech Armor and sprinted _through_ one of the Banshees. The creature, weakened by gunfire, gave easily under his armored advance.

A scream buffeted his eardrums, bringing a thin rill of blood down his cheeks. Liara pushed ahead and brought up a barrier, narrowly saving Garrus' life.

"What-" Garrus coughed a spat a glob of blood onto the ground. "What are you doing!"

"Saving your ass, Garrus. I owe you for all the times you saved mine." Shepard barked back.

"Dammit, Shepard... This... This is my job." He spat more blood onto the ground and stumbled back.

"A job you're unable to handle, Garrus. Shepard and I will take care of it." Liara quipped as she held the barrier.

Shepard grabbed Garrus's hand, stabilizing him before he fell.

"No! I can't drag you down with me... I can't let you die for me..."

"But you were willing to die for me, Garrus. You've done too much. Stand down."

"I... I... Yes sir." Garrus stumbled onto the ground, unable to hold himself up any longer.

Shepard immediately went to work, trying to make sense of the damaged controls. Hackett's team had to arrive soon, _had to._ Time was running out, and Garrus wouldn't hold on much longer. He tried to pull power to the gun, but there was no power to give.

"Dammit!" Shepard grunted. Liara's abilities were giving out, and so was Shepard's patience.

_Power cells!_ His mind screeched. Shepard looked around for a spare, and found to his dismay that the only one was well out of the barrier.

"Liara, hold the Barrier, I need to get that power cell over there."

Liara, her mind and body strained with effort, simply nodded. Shepard took a deep breath and sprinted. Almost immediately a round hit him, shocking the breath from his lungs and bringing temporary shock to his mind. Still, he had a purpose, he had _drive._ He shrugged off a hit and dashed forward. Breath came and went through his lungs, weak and impotent.

A biotic pulse ripped through his shields and armor as he took hold of the power cell. Searing pain tore his conscience mind into fleshy ribbons, and he fell to the ground. Shock tore through his systems and he felt panicky paralysis set into him.

_I can't let you die for me..._ Garrus's voice chimed in his head, and resolve came back.

Shepard took hold of the cell and ran forward, taking and dodging rounds as he went. He threw the cell into the barrier and dove after it, narrowly avoiding a Banshee's terrible grasp. He got to his feet and pushed the power cell into it's slot. He pulled power to the gun and fired.

A moment of pregnant tension passed by, a moment when the gun didn't make a sound, and the Banshees fell silent. Then, a terrible booming sound filled the air, followed by a rush of super-heated air.

_Thermo-nuclear, as Zaeed once said._ Garrus thought, his mind strangled and weak.

The heat didn't get through Liara's barrier, but it did plenty to the creatures outside it. Three of the Banshees melted instantaneously, and two more burst into flames. Still, there were still six of the bastards left, and that meant danger. Shepard fired the gun again, overdrawing the power cell. The air discharge was hotter this time, and the three of them felt it even through the barrier.

"Be careful, Shepard. The power cell has enough energy, but you don't want it to explode from heat." Garrus groaned in a weakening voice.

"Right, Garrus." Shepard responded absently.

Liara's barrier began to waver, and she started to struggle. Banshees approached from all ends, attacking the barrier with biotic attacks. Liara's eyes darted back and forth, scanning and appraising. Enemy forces would be through soon enough, and time was running out.

"Shepard... Make this quick..." Liara shuddered as weakness took her.

_C'mon, Hackett... We need some support, NOW! _Shepard's mind raced.

The gun was still burning hot, and another shot would surely unleash a hellstorm on them. Shepard groaned in anxiety as the barrier began to flicker. He looked down at Garrus's wrecked figure. The entire back of his head had been blown off, and his body was completely destroyed. It wouldn't be long before he expired.

_Not even medi-gel could save him._ Shepard thought sullenly.

As if on cue, Garrus began to stir. His wounded eyes darted around, looking as if he had no idea where he was. He looked up, and struggled to his feet. He was dying, that much was sure, but the fact that he could move... That bode well.

"Shep...Ard... You need to go." Garrus stopped to cough a wad of solidified blood from his mouth.

"No! Garrus, if Liara can hold on a little bit longer, we can wait on Hackett's team!"

"I can... I can't do it... I'm sorry Shepard!" Liara groaned as the barrier flickered, this time the pauses were longer than before.

"Just a bit more, Liara! Just a-"

"Shepard! I can do this... I can detonate the cell and blow these bastards to hell... But I can't let you go with them."

Shepard listened to reason, thought of everything. Thought of everything he risked by letting Garrus doing this, and everything else that could be lost if he didn't. He looked around. Husks were coming, dozens and dozens. Cannibals and Marauders were opening direct fire now, and it wouldn't be long before they got through. Liara was powerful, but not powerful enough.

"No." Shepard said, putting all caution, putting everything at risk. "I can't let you risk this."

"I can't let you- Argh!" Liara's barrier flickered at the wrong time, and a round hit Garrus in the shoulder.

"Garrus!" He shouted as he ran to his friend's side.

"Fuck... Spirits..." Garrus's voice was breathy and weak.

Shepard dragged Garrus behind cover and abandoned the cannon. Liara did the same, nestling behind cover and dispelling the barrier. Almost immediately afterward, hell broke loose. _Again._ Banshees charged and gunfire screamed. Shepard felt something hit his shoulder, and the world went dark red for all of a second.

Once more, Shepard found himself facing off a Banshee. He took a risky gamble in staying still. He had a chance to escape it's icy grasp, but that left Liara and Garrus vulnerable to attack.

_HACKETT!_ His mind screamed, practically furious in his terror.

The Banshee summoned an orb of biotic energy with one hand. Shepard felt himself rising, levitating, and screamed in pain. The Banshee brought it's unused claw forward, slamming into Shepard's abdomen. The orb grew and swelled, becoming twice it's size in seconds. Shepard felt bitter bile rise in his throat as fury and terror intermingled.

Still, the gamble he took had paid off.

The sound of a shuttle filled the air, and the Banshee turned for a moment. Big mistake. Shepard broke free of it's grasp and activated his omni-blade. He charged forward and buried it into the Banshee's metallic body. The Banshee screamed, the sound ripping away at the sensitive gray matter between Shepard's ears.

The shuttle doors opened and a full compliment of soldiers opened fire. Geth pulse rifles shredded the air and the sound of screaming were stifled. Shepard took the opportunity immediately and grabbed Garrus's wounded shoulders. He dragged him to more ample cover and took a moment to administer a full compliment of medi-gel. Liara was weakening rapidly and Garrus looked even _worse_ than that time he took a rocket to the face.

The shuttle and it's troops kept suppressing fire on the husks, ripping apart the armada with deadly ferocity. Shepard groaned as he watched the Banshees turn toward them. Though the pressure had been taken off of him, it was only being redirected. A powerful orb of energy flew toward the shuttle, crashing with intense force into it's hull. The shuttle shook for a moment, but was otherwise undamaged. It's occupants kept up the fire, using modified Geth Plasma rifles to rain death on the husk army.

More biotic attacks hit the shuttle, and more than one soldier was killed by the barrage, but the firing squad held steady. Shepard squared away Garrus and Liara, doing everything he could for Garrus and revitalizing Liara's strength. He was loathe to leave them defenseless, even for a moment, but Hackett had informed him that the Crucible was still too infested to do anything. The cannon was agonizingly close, and it would be easy to reach it.

"Godspeed." He took a deep breath and charged.

A biotic orb ripped just across his back, leaving a scorching mark. A shot hit his helm, luckily deflected but close nonetheless. He ducked under another biotic assault and fired blindly. He threw himself in front of cover, barely avoiding another biotic assault. He pulled himself up and activated his tech armor.

A round slammed into the controls, scrambling but not destroying the device. He quickly lined the cannon up with the Crucible beam and fired. The shelled singularity flared red-white and flew. Moments later, a deafening blast could be heard even from the office building. Shepard watched with some satisfaction as he noticed Alliance troops moving in. rounds were shredding his armor now, and time was running low.

A round smashed through his armor and sheared away a layer of flesh, sending Shepard flying forward.

"Argh!" He screamed as he hit the ground, a sound more terrifying than all these Reapers combined.

The shuttle's firing squad kept the heat on, despite it, and dealt critical damage to the enemy. All of them were wounded, and a few knew that they wouldn't make it past here. Still, they were here for Shepard. They were fighting for _Shepard._ Their determination kept them alive through the ordeal.

The screams stopped for a moment, quelling the panic that had spread over Shepard's mind. He looked around, and was glad to see that the Banshees were retreating.

"Hoorah!" The marines shouted as they saw their victory.

Shepard got to his feet and sprinted back toward Garrus and Liara. He was glad to find them alive. His gladness faded quickly. He looked up to see a Harvester's terrible form rising in the darkness. A scream rose to his lips, but they were plastered shut. His mouth went dry and his eyes grew wide. Energy bolts shot out, loud and vicious in their assault. The shuttle was devoured whole by this attack, and it's occupants were sent soaring out the main door.

The Harvester unleashed another volley, ripping apart the shuttle's hull and sending it's smoking form rocketing across the skies. It crashed into the building and skidded into a wall. It's wrecked form wasn't too far from Shepard and his wounded squad, either. Shepard breathed a sigh of relief and looked across the building. The marines were alive, if reduced severely. Three or so were walking, and two were face down in the ash. None of them looked like they would survive past this day.

"Marines! Over here!" Shepard shouted, breaking their paralysis through sheer force of will.

They scrambled to the ruined section where Shepard was, eager to escape the barrage of projectiles the Harvester was producing. One of them was hit as he ran, his smoking body soared off the building itself. Another was literally ripped in half by a projectile, and only one managed to escape to cover.

"Commander, what do we do now?" The marine asked in a shaking voice.

"Any ordinance in that shuttle?"

"Tons." The marine responded, his voice still shaking with fear.

"Good. Hold here until I get back."

"R-r-right."

Shepard took a look around. A sea of husks was on it's way back, and it threatened to swallow their meager force whole. The Harvester still stood watch, occasionally sending a barrage of fire their way. With a deep breath, Shepard sprinted for the shuttle. He dodged under an attack and crushed a Husk under his feet, then rolled forward to avoid being grabbed. The sea of husks was getting closer, much, much closer.

Shepard made it to the shuttle, but found the doors jammed. He began to smash on the glass, hitting with every last iota of strength he could manage. A husk grabbed his shoulder, and almost on instinct, Shepard grabbed it's hand and threw it forward. A familiar roar greeted his ears, and Shepard turned to face a brute.

Cracking his knuckles, Shepard formulated a rough plan. He took his heavy pistol and opened fire, slowly chinking away at it's armored plating. The Brute roared it's fury and charged. A small grin stretched onto Shepard's face as he side-stepped the Brute's attack. The colossal beast crashed into the Shuttle's door, caving in the reinforced metal. Shepard's grin faded and he began to run.

The beast whipped it's arm back, slamming the back of Shepard's unshielded head. Blood spewed from his mouth and something broke with a horrible snap. He flew through the air and crashed onto the ground with a heavy thud, blood slowly pooling around him. The Harvester roared and opened fire, sending a barrage unto Shepard's exposed body.

Pain and heat seared into him with unprecedented speed. His body was flung once more like a rag-doll, flying through the air. He crashed into a wall and collapsed onto the ground, more blood spewing from his mouth. The Brute approached him, it's huge arms raised to the sky. Shepard forced himself up and barely dodged another blow, feeling the air rush by his body. The Harvester took notice and rapidly unleashed another volley of rounds.

Shepard ducked down under the shots and activated his armor. He sprinted from the Brute toward the downed shuttle, intent on getting in. The Brute charged, rushing at speeds that rivaled even the fastest of cheetahs. It slammed into Shepard's back with incredible force, crushing his body and sending him flying through the air. Shepard crashed into the shuttle door with enough force to shatter the glass.

He quickly disengaged the mag-lock through the shattered window and forced the door open. He ducked inside and slammed the door shut, taking a moment to re-engage the lock. The Brute crashed into the downed shuttle once more, sending more glass flying like shrapnel. Shepard grabbed at the nearest piece of ordinance- A belt of grenades, and activated them all at once. He threw the grenades into the Brute's roaring mouth and ducked under another rain of shrapnel.

A muffled blast met Shepard's ears, and he looked up to see the Brute collapsing, clearly and wonderfully dead.

"Oh thank god..." Shepard spoke with a wispy and wounded voice.

Shepard grabbed an M-920 Cain and looked out the shattered window. The Harvester was still firing on his squad, and the Marine seemed to be struggling to hold back the Reaper infantry. Shepard took a deep breath and primed the weapon.

_This thing better work... And it better not kill us all in the process._ Shepard thought with rising panic.

The weapon primed and Shepard fired. The projectile streamed with incredible speed, going from 30 Miles per hour to 3000 in half a second. The explosion was massive, huge, _colossal_, and extremely powerful to boot. The shockwave whipped at incredible speeds, ripping up the building and tearing any caught in it's way to dust. The Harvester was obliterated by the blast, and many of the Reaper ground troops were also killed by it. The Marine and Shepard's squad survived the blast, although none of them would walk away easily.

The shockwave tore the marine away from his cover, sending him flying through the air. Liara and Garrus, however, managed to stay firmly perched behind the concrete wall. The marine crashed into the ground, grunting as he did. Shepard looked around the destroyed building, and was glad to see that over half of the enemy resistance had been wiped out. He triggered his radio.

"Hackett. How are things?"

"Not good, Shepard. The cannon ripped up most of the Reaper ground troops, but there are still three goddamn destroyers guarding the beam. Our fleets can't get a target, and we can't do anything but survive. Turian forces have been completely wiped out, Asari are under fire and threatening to buckle, but the Krogan are holding steady. Let's hope that Kaidan can get that gun working, it's the only thing powerful enough to take out a Reaper."

"I don't know sir, one gun can't do that, can it?"

"You underestimate us, Shepard. That cannon is a triumph in Turian-Quarian design, strong enough to rip apart half a mile of steel plating."

"Alright, sir. We need an evac, we have wounded."

"No can do, Shepard. Scans say that the shuttle we sent is still operational, improvise."

"Yes sir. Shepard out."

Shepard looked around the shuttle. The pilots were dead and the vehicle was ruined... But Hackett said that it might work. He pulled the door open and called out.

"To the shuttle! We're pulling out!" Shepard shouted, straining his voice to it's limit.

They didn't respond with words. Liara took Garrus's arm and carried him as they ran to the shuttle. The Marine ran, but with a noticeable limp. Shepard opened fire, trying to keep fire off the running soldiers. His plan was to keep the Reaper bastards away from the two of them. Unfortunately, things don't always go the way you plan.

Shepard took Garrus by the arms and dragged him inside, careful not to injure him further as he did it. Liara turned and faced the enemy- An advancing armada of Reaper ground troops that pushed ahead at incredible speeds. A cascading arc of rounds crashed into the shuttle and the ground. She pulled her sub-machine gun and began to fire off volleys.

"Liara! We need to leave!" Shepard shouted as he watched the Asari fight.

Liara turned to enter the shuttle, and at just that moment, a round chose to hit her. Scorching heat and pain exploded in her leg, and Liara felt warm blood splattering all over her clothing. She collapsed to the ground and screamed in pain. More rounds ripped apart the shuttle and it's occupants. Shepard turned to grab Liara, holding out his arms. A flurry of rounds slammed into him, breaking his shields and armor in one fell swoop.

"Liara!"

"Go!" She screamed, her voice resonating with pain and terror.

Before Shepard could protest, a grenade bounced off the shuttle's hull and exploded. Shepard was thrown back by the blast, and Liara's body was destroyed from the knees down. Still, she fought, holding onto her heavy pistol with one weakening hand.

The shuttle doors closed and Liara kept firing. The army of soldiers that were moving closer, fast and deadly in their march. Liara fired a round, bursting one's skull wide open. She fired another and caved in a Marauder's chest. In turn, a round crushed her chest, and she spewed more blood onto the ground.

Shepard turned to the marine, who had seated himself into a chair.

"You know how to fly this thing?" Shepard asked the Marine.

"Yes sir." He responded.

Shepard silently thanked the gods that _this_ one survived. Thanked god that he knew how to fly. The shuttle was still under fire, but the pressure was easing rapidly. The shuttle pulled into the air and took off, moving quickly and powerfully as it did. It trailed smoke, and on more than one occasion something exploded, but it functioned almost perfectly.

While Shepard and Garrus had escaped, Liara was edging closer to death. She fired rounds with incredible speed and precision, careful to hit the head. A marauder sprinted up close, toting it's rifle. Liara discharged three rounds, one to the neck and two to the head. Yet, bullets were far from enough. A Brute came from the sea of husks, huge and terrible.

Blood seeped from her ravaged body, and her vitality drained quickly. Still, she wouldn't give them the satisfaction of killing her. She backed up, she backed up until her back was to a wall. She fired off more shots before a round crushed her hand.

"Ah!" She screamed in pain.

Using whatever scant remains of her strength, she channeled it into a biotic orb. The orb expanded and grew, swelling to twice it's size in seconds. Rounds slammed into it and were entranced there, held in place by the orb's stasis field. The orb swelled until it was just as large as it's conjuror. Liara looked to the advancing army, then looked down at the place where her legs once were. With a final shout, she dispelled the orb.

A massive purple-blue blast of energy tore out, enveloping the entire ruined complex and the reaper forces with it. As the Blackstar cannon exploded, it's singularity imbued with the orb's, turning the purple-blue hue red. Even from the shuttle, Shepard could see the massive explosion. He was grimly reminded of the bomb that Jack had detonated on Pragia.

When the shuttle touched down at Base Camp less than a minute later. Garrus was toted off to the infirmary and Shepard was given time to recuperate. And grieve.


End file.
